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Create a Website Account - Manage notification subscriptions, save form progress and more.
Notices of Violation are mailed to the registered owner of the vehicle.
Show All Answers
School zone speed safety camera located on the 4300 North side block of East West Highway from Baltimore Avenue to Adelphi Road will only be operational Monday through Friday, between 6:00 a.m. and 8:00 p.m. Violations will not be captured during summer months. A school zone is an area within a half-mile radius of any school established by Prince George's County and the State Highway Administration, pursuant to the Maryland Transportation Code 21-803.1
Any location where speed cameras are in operation must be marked by signs that indicate a speed monitoring system is in use.
The fine amount for a school zone speed safety violation is $40.
No. A violation of §21-809 carries a civil monetary penalty only.
The Town of University Park utilizes transportable and handheld speed safety cameras. The technology for the cameras is shown below. Violations are mailed to the registered owner of the vehicle after review and approval of the data and recorded images by a member of the Police Department. The speed safety camera installations represent state-of-the-art technology that is precise and unbiased in its ability to identify vehicles speeding.
The owner of the vehicle is responsible for paying the fine in the Notice of Violation. If you don't agree with the speeding violation you have the right to contest the citation in court. You can also request review by the Town's ombudsman before the deadline in the Notice for paying the citation or asking for a trial. To request this review, contact Elizabeth Gilead at (301) 277-0050 or email@example.com.
Please call 1-866-790-4111 and have your license plate number readily available.
The registered owner of a vehicle will be mailed the Notice of Violation. If your vehicle/plate was stolen or you are a rental/lease car agency, you may complete an Affidavit of Non-Responsibility and attach supporting documentation found on www.violationinfo.com. The Affidavit must be received by the due date of your Notice. The Affidavit and supporting documentation will be reviewed and will result in either dismissal of the notice or scheduling an administrative hearing. You will be notified in writing of any action taken.
No. Owners who receive speed safety camera violations are cited for speed violations only.
Speeding is dangerous and often deadly. In 2018, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, there were more than 9,300 fatalities in crashes where aggressive driving or speeding was a contributing factor.
A vehicle's level of speed also has a significant impact on a pedestrian's level of risk for severe injury or death. The AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety found that a pedestrian hit by a vehicle traveling at 20 m.p.h. is nearly two-thirds less likely to be killed, compared to a pedestrian struck by a vehicle traveling at 30 m.p.h.
The use of school zone speed safety cameras is authorized under the §21-809, of the Transportation Article, Annotated Code of Maryland. The Town's Police Department partnered with VerraMobility to conduct a school zone speed study. The study revealed a need for a school zone speed safety camera program. The speed camera program provides a safer school zone, while also benefiting the community allowing more resources for community policing.
University Park will be using state-of-the-art digital unmanned cameras and proven violation detection technology to help decrease potential violations at school zone locations in and on the perimeter of the Town, in addition to using officer operated speed detection equipment. Speed safety cameras have shown to be effective in reducing crashes as well as pedestrian-related injuries. Most importantly, communities that use speed safety cameras consistently report safer roads around their schools. The program helps ensure that drivers pay more attention and obey traffic control devices.


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Don't copy that pole vault! According to the London 2012 Olympic "conditions for ticket holders," you are not allowed to take pictures or video of the events nor are you allowed to "exploit" any video on social networks.
Images, video and sound recordings of the Games taken by a Ticket Holder cannot be used for any purpose other than for private and domestic purposes and a Ticket Holder may not license, broadcast or publish video and/or sound recordings, including on social networking websites and the internet more generally, and may not exploit images, video and/or sound recordings for commercial purposes under any circumstances, whether on the internet or otherwise, or make them available to third parties for commercial purposes.
This means no Instagrams, no Tweetpics, no Facebooking ("OMG OLYMPICS!!"), and no nothing. In short, you shouldn't tell anyone you went to the Olympics.
According to Petapixel, UK photographers are already being hassled for taking photos of the Olympic "city" from public places, which suggests perhaps that London should spring for a geodesic dome to cover the proceedings in mystery and smash cameras of errant Tweeters.
Perhaps there's a reason Orwell set 1984 in London.

subset: commoncrawl


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Dodgers start Derek Lowe, RHP (2-2, 4.56) vs. Matt Morris, RHP (2-0, 2.00).
Dodgers: 13-6 (1st place NL West, best record in the major leagues, 2.0 GA, L1)
Giants: 9-8 (3rd place NL West, 3.0 GB, W5)
From Dodgers.com, the scouting report on the starters:
Dodgers: Lowe is coming off one of those Coors Field messes, having allowed more runs than innings pitched. As usual, he couldn't get Brad Hawpe out, which won't be a problem in this game against the Giants. Prior to that, Lowe pitched an eight-inning gem against San Diego. He beat the Giants on April 7, allowing one run over seven innings.Giants: After allowing 22 home runs in 207 2/3 innings last season, Morris has surrendered just one longball in 18 innings so far, and that was to ex-St. Louis teammate Albert Pujols in his last start. Control has been a mild issue for Morris, who has issued 10 walks. But only one of those free passes has come around to score. The Giants are 3-0 in his starts.
- The Giants are riding a five-game winning streak, including three straight one-run decisions, and Barry Bonds has heated up. Bonds leads the NL with six HR and has hit home runs in three of the last four games. On the other hand, he has never hit one against Derek Lowe (he is 0-for-6 lifetime), and the AP reports Lowe "hasn't allowed a homer in his last six starts and just one in 14 appearances since Aug. 14, 2006. Lowe's average of 0.58 home runs allowed per nine innings was third-lowest in the majors last season among pitchers who threw at least 162 innings.
- And how about some more about Lowe, who is dominant at Dodger Stadium? The right-hander is 5-0 with a 1.46 ERA in his last six home games.
- The Dodgers have won 12 of the last 13 games against the Giants, including an eight-game winning streak to date as well as a four-game winning streak at Dodger Stadium. Even the goofy little "Accuscore" thingy on ESPN.com gives the Dodgers a 62% chance of winning tonight.
- All of this positive talk has me certain that we're going to lose the series. Let's see if we can pick up game 1 tonight.
The lineup, from Inside the Dodgers:
Furcal, SS
Pierre, CF
Garciaparra, 1B
Kent, 2B
Gonzalez, LF
Martin, C
Ethier, RF
Betemit, 3B
Lowe, P


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Rule #1 - Be Patient - Rule #2 - Don't ask when, if you don't contribute - Rule #3 - You have coding skills - LinuxMCE's small brother is available: http://www.agocontrol.com
Hello,I am a new user to Linux MCE and was wondering if there are any good places for pre-configured machines to run it? I was browsing the marketplace here and saw a few options and just figured I'd ask. I'm looking for a core right now, and will probably only have one or two media directors attached that.Thanks in advance.


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"A nonpartisan, independent review of interrogation and detention programs in the years after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks concludes that 'it is indisputable that the United States engaged in the practice of torture' and that the nation's highest officials bore ultimate responsibility for it."
So began a page-one story in the New York Times that should have dominated public discussion for days and begun the process of coming to terms with this shameful chapter in American history. Unfortunately, the story ran April 16, the day after the Boston Marathon bombing, and thus got little notice. And just as attention on Boston was waning, the George W. Bush Library and Museum was dedicated in Dallas. Unsurprisingly, neither President Obama nor the ex-presidents assembled to celebrate the event (and the Bush administration), mentioned this "nonpartisan, independent review."
It's been pretty much consigned to the memory hole. But maybe it's not too late to retrieve it.
The review was done by The Constitution Project's Task Force on Detainee Treatment, which included members not normally associated with critics of the Bush administration, such as former Republican Rep. Asa Hutchinson (cochairman), who was an undersecretary in the Bush administration's Department of Homeland Security and administrator of the Drug Enforcement Administration.
The task force concluded that in Iraq, Afghanistan, Guantanamo, and other places, American forces engaged in torture and other practices that violated U.S. laws and international treaties — conduct that has been condemned by the U.S. government when practiced by other governments. Such conduct has long been considered a war crime, the task force noted. While it stopped short of claiming that the highest government leaders explicitly called for the use of torture against detainees, it said the use was a consequence of the administration's declaration that the Geneva Conventions did not apply to people captured in the "war on terror." (PDF) The report states,
The Task Force believes there was no justification for the responsible government and military leaders to have allowed those lines to be crossed. Doing so damaged the standing of our nation, reduced our capacity to convey moral censure when necessary and potentially increased the danger to U.S. military personnel taken captive.
Democracy and torture cannot peacefully coexist in the same body politic. The Task Force also believes and hopes that publicly acknowledging this grave error, however belatedly, may mitigate some of those consequences and help undo some of the damage to our reputation at home and abroad.
The task force also found,
There is no firm or persuasive evidence that the widespread use of harsh interrogation techniques by U.S. forces produced significant information of value. There is substantial evidence that much of the information adduced from the use of such techniques was not useful or reliable.
It notes that some former officials insist their interrogation techniques were effective, adding, "but those officials say that the evidence of such success may not be disclosed for reasons of national security." The task force discounts such assertions, however, because the former officials "generally include those people who authorized and implemented the very practices that they now assert to have been valuable tools in fighting terrorism.… It is reasonable to note that those former officials have a substantial reputational stake in their claim being accepted." The task force went so far as to reject the claim that torture led to the locating of Osama bin Laden, citing the Senate Intelligence Committee finding to that effect. (The fundamental case against torture, of course, is not that it is ineffective, but that it is immoral.)
The task force also called attention to the continuing detention of prisoners at Guantanamo, over half of whom have long been cleared for release. At the moment 100 of the 166 prisoners are conducting a hunger strike, and 21 are being force-fed by nasal tube, which in itself has been called torture and is condemned by the task force. A majority of the task force called for civilian or military trials of some of the detainees and release of others to countries in which they will not be tortured. It continued,
Those prisoners who are deemed to still be a threat to the safety of the U.S. and its citizens and who would be difficult (a) to prosecute because they were subjected to torture or the relevant criminal laws did not apply overseas at the time of their conduct; or (b) to transfer due to lack of suitable receiving country, would be brought to the mainland United States and held in custody until a suitable place to transfer them was found. Their cases would be subject to periodic review.
This recommendation is not good enough. How can men be held indefinitely because the alleged evidence against them was obtained by torture and is inadmissible? That is grounds for release. But even worse is the recommendation from the two-member minority consisting of Hutchinson and Richard Epstein (yes, alas, that Richard Epstein):
As troubling as indefinite detention might be, there are currently no good or feasible alternatives. Those prisoners who are deemed to be a continuing threat to the United States and for whom a trial is not currently feasible, and where there is no other suitable country that will accept them, should remain in detention for the foreseeable future. They should not be brought to the U.S., and Guantánamo remains the best location to hold them.
Justice demands to know why people against whom there is apparently no trial-worthy evidence are to be left to rot in an American prison in Cuba. This is truly a disgrace. And notice the self-reinforcing nature of the argument. These people are said to be a threat, but holding them at Guantanamo sows the seeds of hostility and the desire for revenge. Even if they were tried and acquitted, they might be angry at the U.S. government for the treatment they received. Are they still to be held even if acquitted? (The Bush administration thought that in some cases, yes.)
It's good to see that the task force report holds the Bush administration lawyers responsible for the mistreatment of detainees:
Lawyers in the Justice Department's Office of Legal Counsel (OLC) repeatedly gave erroneous legal sanction to certain activities that amounted to torture and cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment in violation of U.S. and international law, and in doing so, did not properly serve their clients: the president and the American people.
Extraordinary rendition, the practice (begun in the Clinton years) of outsourcing torture to foreign governments, and abuse of detainees at secret CIA prisons, or "black sites," also come in for condemnation as violations of international law. Unfortunately, the task force did not call for an end to turning people over to other governments; it simply recommended that there be more than "diplomatic assurances" that torture will not take place.
Refreshingly, physicians and psychologists are taken to task for their participation, in violation of age-old ethical standards, in the abuse of detainees, both by devising techniques that constituted torture and for failing to report abuses. It's about time a floodlight was shined on this shameful conduct by medical and so-called mental-health professionals.
Also welcome is the recommendation that "the executive branch should declassify evidence regarding the CIA's and military's abuse and torture of captives." We have a right to know what this lawless government did in our names.
The task force also called on the government to comply with its obligation under the Convention Against Torture to assure "that the victim of an act of torture obtains redress and has an enforceable right to fair and adequate compensation." Quite the opposite has happened: "The United States has not complied with this requirement, in large part because of the government's repeated, successful invocation of the state-secrets privilege in lawsuits brought by torture victims." The Obama administration has been particularly determined to keep such suits out of court. This is a blot on the country.
The report further indicted the government for not complying with its obligation under the Convention Against Torture to "criminalize all acts of torture, attempts to commit torture, or complicity or participation in torture" and "proceed to a prompt and impartial investigation, wherever there is reasonable ground to believe that an act of torture has been committed in any territory under its jurisdiction." It notes that "no CIA personnel have been convicted or even charged for numerous instances of torture in CIA custody." Conspicuous by its absence is the call for prosecution of President Bush, Vice-President Dick Cheney, members of the Office of Legal Counsel who cooked up legal justifications for torture, CIA director George Tenet, and other top officials.
President Obama says "looking backwards" at past conduct is unproductive when it comes to the interrogation of detainees. That's odd. The government doesn't find it unproductive to look back when private individuals commit crimes. Why should government officers get special treatment?
We can only hope that someday, when these people are traveling abroad, they will be arrested and brought before the International Criminal Court.
Finally, the task force notes that Obama, despite apparent promises to end the abuses, has not lived up to expectations. Guantanamo is still open (he said this week he would push to close it), and reporter Jeremy Scahill has exposed the CIA's continued participation in interrogations in a secret prison beneath Somalia's National Security Agency. Scahill's reporting reveals that the administration has simply outsourced torture — hardly an improvement over the Bush years. Of course, Obama also claims the power to kill people and to detain them indefinitely in a military prison without due process.
"The Obama administration has ended the most inhumane treatment of detainees," the report states, "though some troubling questions about current policies remain unanswered. But it is unclear whether it has taken sufficient steps to prevent a future administration from resorting to torture or cruel treatment."
When it comes to conserving the national-security state, it matters little which party is in power.
Sheldon Richman is vice president and editor at The Future of Freedom Foundation (www.fff.org) in Fairfax, Va. He can be reached through his blog, Free Association.


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CI and CT; BS, Physics and Philosophy; MS, Interpreter Education.
On January 13, 2009 at age 60 David Bar-Tzur slipped the bonds of this mortal
existence and went to his eternal rest. Those of us who knew him will miss his
humor, his humility, and his love of learning. This website is the result of thousands of hours of his work as a free gift to the community he loved and the profession he served. It's now in our hands to continue his legacy.
He is survived by his children, SPC Gavriel Bar-Tzur, US Army, Yosef Bar-Tzur, & Elisheva Blalock. His memory will be a blessing. Feedback, additions, corrections, etc. on the website can be sent to d p a r v a z a t g m a i l d o t c o m |
"Where the hand goes, the eye follows; where the eye goes, the mind goes;
where the mind goes, is the heart; where the heart is, lies the reality of being."
To search this site, type your keyword(s) in the white box below
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CAMP LEATHERNECK, Afghanistan, Sept. 21, 2011 — Marine Corps Sgt. Chad John spends 12 hours a day with an aerial view of Afghanistan, but he rarely leaves the ground.
John, a native of Shiprock, N.M., is an unmanned aerial vehicle operator with Marine Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Squadron 3. The Marine Corps uses small, lightweight unmanned aerial vehicles, such as the RQ-7B Shadow, to provide aerial surveillance and reconnaissance for Marines and their coalition partners in Afghanistan.
"We understand the importance of providing the best view to those who are planning to go into an area so they can avoid being in a bad situation," he said. "I always know that if I do not get the best view, I could be putting lives at risk."
While airborne, the RQ-7B Shadow UAV is an extension of two Marines working on the ground. A vehicle operator controls the speed, direction and elevation of the aircraft, while a payload operator controls a camera that looks out for the safety of ground troops.
The evolution and use of unmanned aerial vehicles in the Marine Corps has been ongoing for the last two decades. John said he has seen the force of operators more than triple in size during his time in the service.
"Nearly seven years and seven deployments later, I take pride in seeing how far we have come," John said.
In Afghanistan, the Marine Corps unmanned aerial vehicles support 2nd Marine Aircraft Wing, the air combat element of the southwestern regional command of NATO's International Security Assistance Force.
The work of the Marine unmanned aerial vehicle operators leaves little room for error. Providing an accurate aerial view of the battlefield helps keep service members alive, so the UAV operators must stay alert.
"Working so closely with a small group of guys allows you to learn everyone's weaknesses and strengths," John said. "This allows you not only to become like brothers, but also to help each other to become the best operators we can."
John said he hopes to become an instructor in Arizona after this deployment so he can teach a new generation of Marine Corps UAV operators.
"I want to stay close to this job field and the great group people that I have met," he said. "I have a lot of deployment experience that I could bring to new operators as they come into this cutting-edge field."
U.S. Department of Defense
Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense (Public Affairs)


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Speech by His Highness the Aga Khan at the foundation stone-laying ceremony of AKA, Dhaka
"World and faith are inseparable in Islam. Faith and learning are also profoundly interconnected. The Holy Qur'an sees the discovery of knowledge as a spiritual responsibility, enabling us to better understand and more ably serve God's creation. Our traditional teachings remind us of our individual obligation to seek knowledge unto the ends of the earth - and of our social obligation to honor and nurture the full potential of every human life."
Honourable Adviser for Education
Honourable Advisers
Distinguished Guests
My warmest thanks to all of you who have joined in this celebration - representing so well the diverse and impressive accomplishments of this country. You honour us by being here.
Our immediate purpose today is to lay the Foundation Stone of the Aga Khan Academy in Dhaka. It is a day we hope to look back upon with joy and satisfaction for many years to come. And, if our work is done well, it is a day that future generations will also look back upon as a great beginning.
As you have heard, this new Academy will be an important node in a network of 18 schools throughout the developing world, providing world class education for young men and women from all backgrounds, irrespective of ability to pay. It will be a remarkable place to go to school.
But our commitment to this institution is not simply a matter of creating beautiful, modern facilities for some 700 to 1200 deserving students or developing a corps of several dozen gifted teachers. It is also about creating a new national asset for the whole of this country -and for its broad educational community. This work will be done through an ambitious programme of professional teacher development, attracting talented candidates, sharing best practices, developing curricular innovations, and engaging in the most current training at the Academy's Professional Development Centre.
We could say a lot more about this new Academy. But I thought I might, instead, take a few minutes to describe what I see as the larger significance of our Academies' initiatives. For underlying our dreams for this School is our commitment to principles which have even broader implications.
There are three such principles that I would like to mention.
The first is the centrality of quality education as an element in the Islamic tradition. It is appropriate that I highlight this matter today, for Bangladesh is the first Muslim country in which we have laid a new Academy foundation stone. It also seems appropriate to underscore the spiritual foundations of this work since this event is helping to mark my 50 th anniversary as the spiritual leader of the Shia Ismaili Muslims.
World and faith are inseparable in Islam. Faith and learning are also profoundly interconnected. The Holy Qur'an sees the discovery of knowledge as a spiritual responsibility, enabling us to better understand and more ably serve God's creation.
Our traditional teachings remind us of our individual obligation to seek knowledge unto the ends of the earth - and of our social obligation to honor and nurture the full potential of every human life.
The creation of a new Aga Khan Academy in Dhaka thus grows out of rich Islamic precedents.
The second point I would emphasize today is that our Academy initiative - in Dhaka and elsewhere - is one that strongly affirms the integrity of local and national cultures.
To be sure, this new Academy will connect its students to global perspectives. But it will also respect the central role of each person's particular heritage as a cornerstone of his or her identity and an enriching gift of the Creator.
The beauty of Creation is a function of its variety. A fully homogenized world would be far less attractive and interesting. The roots we inherit from our history – linking us to a particular past – are a great source of strength and joy and inspiration. And a sound educational system should help nourish those roots.
That is why the Aga Khan Academies, wherever they exist, will follow a dual-language curriculum. They will teach in English in order to connect to global society. And they will also teach in the appropriate local language. Here in Dhaka that means teaching in both English and Bangla. Because they will be fluently bilingual, our students will be prepared to unlock the rich treasure chests of history and culture, art and music, religious and philosophical thought, which are integral to one's identity and one's values and which and are such powerful elements here in Bangladesh.
My first two points of emphasis, then, concern the emergence of our Academies program from Islamic traditions, and its commitment to local and national values. My third point is somewhat different, but entirely consistent - the strong link which our Academies will provide to an increasingly globalized world.
I mentioned earlier the importance of affirming the local and the particular in the face of forces which would dilute our identity and homogenize our cultures. But I would also note the equally compelling importance of global partnership and universal understanding - in the face of forces that would dangerously fragment our world. In the process of nurturing a healthy sense of identity, we must resist the temptation to normatize any particular culture, to demonize "the other", and to turn healthy diversity into dangerous discord.
This is why the Academies' curricula, in addition to using English as a connecting language, will emphasize areas of focus such as comparative political systems, global economics, and global cultures, along with the importance of pluralism and a sound ethical foundation.
At the same time, we will provide thorough preparation in subjects such as science and mathematics, developing the habits of rigorous reasoning and searching inquiry. In addition, the Academies experience will be a holistic one, with a healthy program of extracurricular and athletic activities.
Let me reflect for a moment on the matter of ethics - and the importance of ethical commitments not only in government but throughout society. Competent civil society is a major contributor to development particularly where democracies are less well established, or where governmental efforts are inadequate. The absence of corruption or fraud in government is not enough. Fraud in medicine, fraud in education, fraud in financial services, fraud in property rights, fraud in the exercise of law enforcement or in the courts, are all risks which can have a dramatic impact on social progress. This is especially true in rural environments, where fraud is often neither reported nor corrected, but simply accepted as an inevitable condition of life.
This is why the serious and sustained ethical formation of students and teachers is an essential dimension of the Academies program.]
In addition, as we educate for global citizenship, we will also integrate each local school with others in the network, sharing ideas and experiences, exchanging students and teachers, and affirming in the end that all graduates have achieved a globally relevant credential in the form of the International Baccalaureate diploma.
Those, then, are the basic concepts of our program. We believe that this undertaking can flourish particularly well in Bangladesh - where a proud sense of independent national destiny is so often combined with a generous spirit of international partnership. The appreciation here for the institutions of civil society is another favorable factor - and so, may I add, is the impressive progress you have made in achieving gender parity in education.
In the final analysis, the Academies project will face an age-old challenge as it moves ahead - the challenge of balancing the universal and the particular - the global and the local - as influences in human life. It is a challenge which becomes more important with every passing year. It has been said that the most important fact about modern communication technology is that it "universalizes the particular and particularizes the universal"- which simply suggests that local and global experiences are increasingly intermixed.
Such an intermixture can give us the worst of both worlds - hostile, defensive localism on one side and a superficial homogenized mega-culture on the other. Or it can give us the best of both worlds - proud local identities living side by side with creative international cooperation. How this issue will be resolved will depend on whether we can educate future leaders, in Bangladesh and elsewhere, to live creatively in such a setting. Our new program of Aga Khan Academies is one response to that challenge.
We are very proud today formally to expand the Academies network to the country of Bangladesh. And we are very pleased and honoured that you have been able to join us in this moment of celebration and dedication.
Thank you.


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Lobby Watch 14 January 2013
I wasn't sure whether to laugh or scream when tipped off about the latest propaganda blitz planned by European Friends of Israel, a key lobby group in Brussels.
Its calendar for the next few weeks — not yet posted on the EFI website — features a number of events designed to present Israel as a caring and liberal country, which has managed to inoculate itself from financial crises.
Later this month (23 January) the EFI will host a mini-conference titled Humanitarian aid - Israel as a world leader. According to the EFI's blurb, Israel has "aid teams poised to respond in the wake of natural or man-made disasters anywhere in the world." One of these teams, apparently, was "first on the scene in January 2010 after the earthquake hit Haiti."
Have those few words broken all previous records for chutzpah? At the time Israel was rushing to help Haiti (or so we are told), it was enforcing a medieval siege on more than 1.5 million people in Gaza. Israel was in no hurry to address the "man-made disaster" its own policies had caused. Rather, it was only after Israeli troops murdered nine activists trying to bring humanitarian aid to Gaza on a flotilla in May 2010 that it moved to ease, but not lift, the blockade.
Nor, it should be added, is there anything heroic about having the first aid workers in Haiti. As a short new book — L'échec humanitaire: le cas haïtien (The humanitarian failure: the Haitian case — by Frédéric Thomas illustrates, that Caribbean nation has been betrayed and misled by the Western aid industry. Of $10 billion pledged to Haiti at an international donors' conference in New York during March 2010, less than $2.5 billion had been released by July 2012.
Thomas is especially scathing of how aid pledges are made for purposes of "self-congratulation," in which the "first recipient of the message is not the Haitian people but voters in the donor country, who are invited to agree with their governments, so generous and effective." While he does not mention Israel, the criticism can be applied to it.
Israel sent over 250 soldiers to Haiti after the earthquake, and posted videos in their honor on Facebook. Not only was this a clear case of hasbara — as propaganda is called in Hebrew — it violated a principle which genuine humanitarians regard as fundamental: that emergency assistance should be of a civilian nature and be seen as impartial.
Sandy solidarity?
The EFI is a cross-party alliance of members of the European Parliament (MEPs). Its conference — to be hold in the Parliament's headquarters — will be addressed by Navonel Glick from the Israeli Forum for International Humanitarian Aid (IsraAid). Glick has been in New York lately in an apparent gesture of solidarity with victims of Hurricane Sandy.
IsraAid took advantage of that catastrophe by claiming that having a strong military enables Israel to undertake emergency missions. Of course, the less humane side of the same army was displayed when Israel rained its bombs down on Gaza for eight consecutive days in November, again making a mockery of its claim to be a "world leader" in humanitarianism.
Soon after mythologizing about Israel's aid operations, the EFI will turn the spotlight on Israel's economic prowess. A promotional note for a 29 January meeting says that though Israel is small "a host of reforms aimed at liberalizing the economy have allowed it to stand out as one of the world's most competitive economies." The main speaker will be Chaim Hurvitz from Israel's top pharmaceutical firm Teva.
In a March 2012 study, Who Profits? — a project set up by Palestinian and Israeli women — documented how Teva benefits from the occupation. The construction of Israel's apartheid wall has meant that pharmacies and hospitals in occupied East Jerusalem have been prevented from dispensing medicines manufactured in the West Bank. As a result, healthcare services on which all Palestinians in East Jerusalem and many others from across the West Bank rely have been forced to buy Israeli and foreign drugs.
Ironic twist
In an ironic twist, EFI will switch from applauding "competitiveness" — a doctrine which holds that social protections should be dismantled — to embracing young Israelis who demand that the welfare state be preserved. On 20 February, its special guest will be Daphne Leef, who the EFI has appointed "leader" of last year's Tel Aviv protests against the right-wing policies of Benjamin Netanyahu's government.
Leef has a skewed sense of justice. In a much-circulated speech delivered during September 2011, she grew emotional over how "one million Israelis were living under the threat of missiles" fired from Gaza, without saying anything about how four million Palestinians live under a brutal occupation.
It is not hard to see why the EFI is happy to court her. Leef is a useful pawn for lobbyists determined to perpetuate the lie that Israel is a vibrant democracy.
- European Friends of Israel
- European Parliament
- Haiti
- IsraAid
- Gaza
- Gaza Freedom Flotilla
- Gaza siege
- #GazaUnderAttack
- humanitarian aid
- hasbara
- Frederic Thomas
- Navonel Glick
- New York
- Hurricane Sandy
- Chaim Hurvitz
- Teva
- East Jerusalem
- West Bank
- healthcare
- Who Profits?
- Daphne Leef
- Tel Aviv
- Benjamin Netanyahu
- Brussels
Jews against apartheid policies of Netanyahu's government
Permalink Alec replied on
Israel moves ever more to the right with the near neo Nazi Home Party expected to hold the balance of power in a continuation of Netanyahu's government, while the propaganda machine churns out the 'we are really lovely liberals message'. Fortunately many Jews see the reality of the apartheid policies being practised by the current Israeli government as is set out by this message from Jews in South Africa;
"As Jews, with our own painful history of oppression, we are compelled to speak out against human rights violations being committed by the State of Israel – in our name – against the Palestinian people.
The Jewish community is neither homogeneous nor monolithic. There is a growing number of Jews, in South Africa and around the world, who are organising to form alternative spaces and who unconditionally oppose Israeli policies and practices that shamefully privilege Jews over the indigenous Palestinian people. In this vein, we support the non-violent campaign of applying Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) against Israel until it abides by international law and respects basic human rights.
We are encouraged that our South African government is joining those countries that are taking a clear stance against Israel's violations of international law and its acts of violence against the Palestinian people. We hope that the ANC and the SA Government goes further and completely bans Israeli settlement products. Israeli settlements are in clear violation of international law and seriously undermine any chance of negotiations and a just peace.
Our individual consciences, our Jewish tradition and our painful history compel us to declare...to the Israeli government that we will continue to speak out and take a stand for justice and human rights.... For when we proclaim "Never Again", we should mean "Never Again", unconditionally, and to any human being."
very well put alec. keep up
Permalink colin replied on
very well put alec. keep up your good work to spread the truth.
Thank God for honest people
Permalink John Moore replied on
Thank you for your honest comments. You have proved my beliefs to be true, do not throw out the whole tub of apples because some are bad!.
the real hero country
Permalink Eric replied on
of aid to Haiti after the earthquake was, as so often, Cuba. Not soldiers but medical personnnel were sent, quickly setting up a hospital. And after cholera broke out, reportedly imported by UN occupiers from Nepal, patients at the Cuban hospital did much better than patients elsewhere.
For an early report, http://www.aljazeera.com/focus...
Also: http://www.lawg.org/action-cen...
Who funds the EFI?
Permalink Artemis replied on
Now, who funds the EFI?
America, the EU or Israel (which receives US and EU funding)?
If so, couldn't the money be delegated elsewhere?
Funding of EFI
Permalink David Cronin replied on
I've asked the European Friends of Israel to give me details of how they are funded on a few occasions. The only thing they would say was that they were funded by private donors. They are very secretive, though clearly they have a lot of money - for example, they organize all-expenses-paid trips to the Middle East for members of the European Parliament.
Israel being the world
Permalink rollsthepaul replied on
Israel being the world humanitarian leader, is completely consistent with, fighting for peace, killing for Jesus and copulating for chastity. Thank God, I had that frontal lobotomy.
World Humanitarian Leader
Permalink Howard T. Lewis III replied on
We can see the enclaves of zionist self-deceivers where the"world humanitarian leader" propaganda may work as long as the cameras are turned on. But once these zionists get home, they know tis all another lie.
no doubt about it
Permalink robertsgt40 replied on
Yeah, Israel did a bang up job helping the victims of operation cast lead and after the attack on an unarmed aid ship in international waters. Waiting for Israel to be awarded the Nobel Peace Prize
Permalink Brenda Heard replied on
Please tell me there is a petition/protest organised?
Zionist hasbara aka
Permalink Brent replied on
Zionist hasbara aka propaganda was SO RIDICULOUS in this regard that even a Israeli doctor named Dr. Yoel Donchin said the following about it (back then); "'The extreme right wing in Israel is using the Haiti operation to reframe the fallout from the Goldstone report in the eyes of the world,' Dr Yoel Donchin, an Israeli anesthesiologist and a veteran of Israeli rescue operations told The Media Line. 'They know the Haitians are NOT part of the agenda and this is just for PROPAGANDA. But if it's good for Israel they don't care.'
'You can't save everyone, and anyone who has studied mass casualty situations knows that the first thing you have to do is not rush in but to send a small team to evaluate what is the best way to help in the long run,' he said. 'So the fact that Israel wants to race to be the first to be there means NOTHING in the big picture, because Israel is usually the first to arrive BUT ALSO THE FIRST TO LEAVE.' (My note: meaning after the disaster has left the public's eye and the Zionist's can get no more good hasbara aka propaganda value out of it, they are GONE in a flash! And not interested in "helping" anymore!)
'If, for example, Israel were to bring water purification systems and chemical toilets it would be much more helpful,' Dr Donchin said. 'But their logic is that then it wouldn't get on the news.'"
Another quote of Dr. Yoel Donchin notes that in past emergency response situations he's been involved with he literally had to fight with the Israeli government to try to put more medical equipment on the flight rather than weighing it down with camera crews who are going to do HASBARA videotaping and picture taking (for television, print media, etc. etc.)!


text:
Tuesday 11 December 2012
Thrifty Business
If only thrifting/charity/op-shopping was always that joyful and successful! No doubt like many of y'all in the sewing/vintage/retro game, I've got a long-term relationship going with charity shops/thrift stores/op shops. But like many long-term relationships, after the first couple of years of passion, things have mellowed as we've both changed and got new things going on.
I'm sure like many of you, when I was in my teens my lack of funds and desire to wear something more interesting than the offerings in local shops drove me to jumble sales and charity shops where I would get a hunter-gatherer style high from bizarre finds from previous decades that often needed a bit of tweaking. But about ten or fifteen years ago many charity shops (in the South East UK at least, I can't speak for elsewhere) started to 'clean up their act'.
Possibly in reaction to rises in retail space rent, or possibly in accordance to a wider social trend, lots of charity shops got re-fits, chucked out anything older than 10 years and cranked up their prices. In many ways, most charity shops started and continue to look like slightly rubbish versions of normal clothing shops. Rather than being treasure troves of wonders, oddball donations and smelliness (which as everyone knows, is the sign of true emporium of hidden gems!), they now appeal almost exclusively to the late-middle aged women who 'curate' them. Plus, as my Dad regularly laments, in many the men's departments have shrunk or even vanished entirely.
I suspect this is is due to pressure to 'compete' with the high street, which is pumping out ever cheaper pieces of what many sadly view to be disposable clothing. But bizarrely enough, as most charity shops now only stock newer items and their prices are quite high, you can often find donations from the cheaper shops on the high street like Primark and Peacocks at about the same price, or perversely for even more, than they originally sold for new!
Obviously I understand that I cannot expect their rails and shelves to contain the boxy 60's jackets , 70's maxi dresses or 50's ceramics that I remember being available in the 90's. But having worked until very recently for a textile and clothing recycling charity, I know A LOT of pre-80's vintage is still out there and being donated. If the 'good shit' gets diverted by retro-savvy sorters and dealers before the rest of us get a chance to snaffle any of it, that's one thing, and I can probably stomach it. But my fear, my true honest-to-goodness-wake-up-in-the-middle-of-the-night-sweaty-and-crying fear, is that LOTS of it is just getting binned.
Some years ago, a friend of my mum's was (maybe still is) the manger of one of these gentrified-but-blandly-style less charity shops. Having heard that I was a big charity shop fan, she invited us to come by and said she'd give me a discount on anything I liked. There was not one thing I wanted in that whole damn shop. And believe me I looked hard. She was clearly so proud at how 'modern' her shop was, entirely misunderstanding the route of my fascination with them. I wasn't just looking for high street items with perhaps a couple of quid knocked off the original high street ticket price. I was out to go hunting through the belongings of previous generations and make potential-filled, amusing and, yes, maybe even smelly discoveries!
But, if I have to really boil down why I dislike gentrified charity shops, with their cheap laminate flooring and Radio 2's Stevie Wright in the afternoon blaring, into one single reason, it's this; I am convinced that all those lovely volunteer late-middle-aged women have collectively received thousands of donated vintage sewing patterns, maybe had a laugh with their colleagues about how their old mum used to sew all her clothes, and then systematically binned them all like some horrendous vintage sewing pattern holocaust.
Ok. So to be fair to charity shops, as I said earlier, I have also changed and become distanced. For one thing, I got into sewing my own clothes from scratch. The challenge of learning to make all the things I normally would have bought from a shops was/is so exciting. Starting a new sewing project from scratch is so full of promise, possibilities and offers complete control, that wandering around trying to find a gem in a charity shops when in your head you have a vision of exactly what you are damn well after can just be too bloody frustrating. And when you start to furnish yourself with the skills to make that vision a reality, it can be hard to go back to relying on the offerings that the charity shop gods choose to bestow on you during any given month.
Also, I physically moved away from charity shops, driving a further wedge between us. Correct me if I'm wrong, but from my experience of living in Barcelona, there seem to be no charity shops in Spain aside from a crazily expensive chain called Humana. I used to get my fixes when possible during visited back to the UK, but I guess I just got used to not having them as an option in my everyday life.
Then when I moved back to UK, as formerly mentioned, I ended up working for a textile recycling charity. When you receive bags and bags and bags of unwanted textiles every fortnight, a few pieces of which you are allowed for personal use for a small donation, the paltry stock of most local charity shops does not look inviting or inspiring. Ok, I got spoilt. I admit it, I am spoilt.
So where do things stand now with me and charity shops? You know what? Our relationship has entered a pretty stable phase. I'm still going to sew my own clothes, but the things I can't produce myself that I can get second hand, I'll keep hunting for in charity shops. So now, when I go in them I usually look for the following things: curtains and fabric if they have it (a guilt-free stash addition!), knitwear (especially fine-knit cardigans because I'll never be able to create those myself even when I learn to knit), shoes and boots (yeah some people think that's grim, but if they are fairly new then I'm fine with it), kitchen equipment (within reason, I wouldn't buy second hand pots and pans) and belts.
What about you? Have you noticed a change in your relationship to charity shops/thrift store/op-shops? Have they 'smartened up' and become boring round where you live? Do you prefer this cleaner thrifting experience? Do you have set things you always look for when you visit them?
31 comments:
- Annabel Vita said...
Yes yes yes! You've hit the nail on the head here. Most charity shops have lost the thrill of the hunt element that kept me hooked. I've also moved to an area where the charity shops are super expensive, which is discouraging.
- 11 December 2012 at 15:31
I know a lot of people throw out vintage patterns don't even donate them. Which is horrifying.
- 11 December 2012 at 15:38
- .x.Helen.x. said...
Very well put. I used to work near a charity shop that had a single cabinet full of sewing and knitting patterns. One of the staff told me they threw away any donations that wouldnt fit in the cabinet. They were so keen to get rid of the patterns that they would sell them to me for between 10p and 1p each. Yes - one penny for 1950s and 1960s knitting patterns! I felt like i had to "rescue" as many as possible. Unfortunately i dont live near there anymore.
The local shops near me in the north west all sound very much like you describe. I browse occasionally but rarely find anything. - 11 December 2012 at 15:40
- Becky said...
I never had a lot of thrift stores around to begin with, living in a small state that pretty much exists on chain stores for everything. But I did notice they "cleaned up" and weren't as interesting anymore/got more expensive. Not just for clothes--their book selection got greatly reduced too! At least now I have a Kindle and can get older classics for free--I used to buy them for a quarter at the thrift stores. I still prefer shopping secondhand to shopping new when I'm looking for clothes that I'm not sewing, though, and will probably be making a trip sometime after Christmas when my schedule lightens up. I'm desperately in need of some sweaters and color in my wardrobe, and sewing a wedding dress has left me no time for DIY!
- 11 December 2012 at 15:40
- Emma said...
My mother in law works half a day a week as a volunteer for a charity shop that is quite "upmarket". when they sort donations they do not accept anything for the store that smells - it goes straight to the rag man - WHAT A CRIME! Apparently the rag man pays them way more than you would think and that it simply isn't worth cleaning the items. And the manager is very proud that her charity shop does not smell.
- 11 December 2012 at 15:53
I live on the east coast of the US, and many of the thrift stores here are well aware that certain young people love crazy old clothes, and price them accordingly. Many have vintage sections. Goodwill stores seem to save a lot of the crazier stuff for Halloween. I had also assumed that the reduction in vintage had something to do with the proliferation of online vintage sellers, particularly on Etsy. I imagine there are people stalking the thrift stores and snatching the good stuff up!
And, yes, the prices have gone way up. It's much worse in the stores that price things individually, rather than have a set price for each type of item.
For the above reasons, but also because I'm older and have an office job, I have stopped going to thrift stores to find crazy and unique items and started focusing on things like work trousers and sweaters. I pay more attention to quality and materials than I used to. I now have lots of work-appropriate clothes from brands like Banana Republic, Ann Taylor/LOFT, and Talbots (these are the brands that I find in my petite sizes). I would never want to pay close to the retail prices for such boring items, but I do get a thrill from finding lined wool trousers for under $10.
I agree about the sewing patterns, as only 1 of many thrift stores I have frequented even sells them. - 11 December 2012 at 16:05
- Jano said...
It is the same here in NZ- there has been a proliferation of hospice shops that have become much more upmarket (in the bigger centres at least). At least the money is going to a good cause as we also have a chain of stores that are essentially large warehouses filled with cheap clothes, mostly stuff that hasn't sold in the shops with some vintage pieces in the mix. I was an avid op shopper for many years and still make an effort to pop in but I have limited myself to buying fabric, patterns and occasional household items.
- 11 December 2012 at 18:07
- Beklet said...
Yup - loads of charity shops here and only two in the whole town actually seem to sell dress patterns. I have a friend who works in one of the bland shops and she will let me know if fabric etc turns up but she says she's never seen any sewing patterns :(
- 11 December 2012 at 18:45
- MrsC (Maryanne) said...
I onl haunt them when doing costuming, because I've never found anything my size I would be seen dead in, if at all. I do remember in the early '80s when you really could buy a 1950's new look dress or a 60's mini evening gown in turquoise lurex brocade for a few dollars. And winkle picker stilettos, beaded cardis, all the 'real deal' stuff that was considered tat until suddenly it was hot stuff! Now, it is hard as you say and the proliferation of pilled polyester cheap clothing is so depressing! I did score a few finds when in the UK though - a patched Indian skirt, a leather jacket for the hubster, silver salad tongs and cake slice and a few cool teatowels, that kind of thing. But no button boxes, or good patterns. It was gutting really.
- 11 December 2012 at 18:58
- Zoe said...
Thanks everyone for your comments so far!
I totally agree about why lots of charity shops don't put tatty looking things like used patterns out. But as we all know, a tatty envelope might still contain a thoroughly usable pattern which is why it's so frustrating! Well done for volunteering your time, and for sourcing second hand textiles. I hope the charity shop gods smile favourably upon you!
xx - 11 December 2012 at 20:01
- didyoumakethat said...
This is SUCH an interesting blog post. I don't know if there's time in the evening to say everything I want to! I feel as though we live in an age where we remember the halcyon days of charity shops and still keep hoping that they're with us - I don't think they are. Mrs C accurately puts her finger on the early 1980s as a time when you could still wander into any charity shop and find gems. It was a teenage rite of passage to buy a 'grandad coat' from a charity shop! And we didn't have to look too hard for those coats. Then, something shifted. As you say, they went upmarket. Also, designers started getting involved. Charity shops became cool. I remember walking into a charity shop in central London as a skint student and being staggered at the prices. I couldn't afford to shop in a charity shop! Even now, I don't particularly like my approach to charity shopping in London. There's one I regularly visit in Islington to see if the bored and rich have recently dumped a load of stuff. As you say, you can find some good stuff ie belts. But there's not much spontaneity going on in my visits. Now, I DO think there are some hidden gems. Charity shops afficionados should definitely pay a visit to Leigh-on-Sea in Essex. And I DO think there are some people who can sniff out a charity shop gem much better than the rest of us - Miss P springs to mind, as does another good friend of mine. But you have to have such an eye, and it feels like a case of diminishing returns. One last question - has Ebay and the Internet become our charity shop of the modern age? One last, last point (!) - my sense is that it's still very different in the US. I read so much about amazing finds at garage sales...
- 11 December 2012 at 20:45
- Laura said...
Here in the US I've noticed a similar trend - 'real' vintage is being upsold or sold on ebay, simply out of style stuff is going to overseas markets or being turned into fiber recycling, and the current stuff is the bulk of the thrift stores I visit. I am not particularly into vintage as something I actually wear, so I still shop secondhand a lot.
There is one thrift store in my vicinity that resells sewing patterns, and I regularly buy them there. Otherwise patterns seem to be overpriced these days, at antique markets and online - just because it's old doesn't mean it's worth 20 bucks, people. - 11 December 2012 at 23:02
- Kate said...
I work for a rather well known organization here in the US, and all I can say is, I sometimes feel that these non-profit orgs have seem to forgotten what exactly their purpose in the retail biz is. Seeing it first hand and also shopping occasionally in thrift shops there has been a major rise in prices including the one I work for and there seems to be no other reason than greed. Luckily I only work with second hand books but, I know how the game is played and 99% of the time it's a sick guessing game to see how much someone is willing to pay for an item. I also experience a lot of the same bizarre excessive consumer behavior that mall shops see. I have a serious conscience about my footprint on this earth which is why I chose to work for this org in the first place but, now 3 years in I have mixed feelings and don't think these places ultimately give a crap about the planet and it really is all about the money. Sad.
-Kate - 11 December 2012 at 23:40
- Kate said...
- This comment has been removed by the author.
- 11 December 2012 at 23:45
- Lucy Legget said...
I never really visited charity charity shops that much when I lived in the although I did have a green paisley 70s shirt with long collars (from Iran!)that I wore to death much to my mum and boyfriend's horror.
Come to Australia - the OP shop is alive and kicking, especially in country towns. Retail here is pretty stuck in the 1950s anyway so op shops are still mainly the rummage kind. I really started shopping in them out of necessity 3 years ago as we were very short of cash and I am now hooked, its when I started sewing and I only by swims, shoes and undies, soon to change..thanks;) new now. I get all my jeans there, (I love my 2 current pairs) I have found beautiful shirts, skirts, tops etc. Charity shops run by community groups, hospices, etc. seem to be the best (i.e. cheaper, with treasures to find and friendly people working there.) It also where I get most of my material. I have a large (and possibly slightly obsessive collection of vintage sheets) but I've also found great jersey fabric, linen, 4m of new denim for $2 etc. One of the shops where I used to live obviously got in lots of patterns and there were often 50 or 60 to choose from and I had a job to limit myself!
Its funny though it can start to feel a bit obsessive like normal shopping. I am a big beleiver in sustainability but was starting to get more than I could feasibly use myself. I have moved to a different town with only 2 (rather than 10!) and find it calmer, I am sewing from my large stash and just pick up the odd thing at the op shop.
I like saving money, finding things a like, knowing my money is helping someone else. Just out of interest why not pots and pans?
We were back in the UK in April and I agree, I went into one of the glammed up designer charity shops and whilst it looked amazing and I can see would appeal to people who didn't like charity shops, for me it was really uninspiring, someone else had done all the sorting, taking out one of the most fun bits that makes it different to normal shopping.
Sorry for my overly long comment, a subject close to my heart.
- 12 December 2012 at 02:28
First of all, I can't stop listening to that song! It's been my jam the last few weeks.
Second, while I love the idea of thrift shopping and we have a few stores that sell really cool secondhand clothes here in NYC, thrift stores are pretty expensive here (like $8 for a thin, worn-out-looking t-shirt!). I guess there's a price tag attached to a well-curated shop. :( I also hate digging through unorganized shops looking for something specific-- I'm just not that into shopping, and it's frustrating to come in looking for something and leave emptyhanded. - 12 December 2012 at 04:04
- Kim said...
I live in Canada and thrift shops have become a lot more popular and expensive over the past decade.
There used to be a stigma attached to thrift shops- you only shopped there if you were too poor to afford now clothes. I was teased for wearing secondhand clothing.
I don't think that the shops here throw anything old away- they just charge crazy prices for 'vintage' stuff, even if it's falling apart.
Good finds are rare because they've been picked over a hundred times.
The worst offender is Value Village. They sell Wal-Mart clothes for more than they cost to buy new, and they sell things that obviously SHOULD have been thrown out. - 12 December 2012 at 04:25
- Lovenicky said...
I agree with Kim. I have been thrifting for about 10 years and I have seen the prices go up and up for the same type of things! 10 years ago I got a very nice Ann Taylor blazer for work for only $7. Now something like that is more than $12!
I'm lucky that my neighbourhood has a lot of immigrants and the local thrift shop has lots of ethnic clothing which I love. Some of the workmanship, embroidery, etc on these clothing are unbelievable! - 12 December 2012 at 04:53
- Roisin Muldoon said...
Zoe, you've summed up for me a lot of what my problem is with charity shops. Where I live, in Leamington Spa, the charity shops are really curated, and it gets worse at this time of year when they move out a lot of the secondhand stock to make room for new, Christmas gift type stock. Then the prices are higher and as Karen points out, this is pricing some people out of able to shop in charity shops and hence encouraging them to shop in Primark or whatever. I find that really problematic and I have to admit to adding to the problem somewhat - I don't donate to the large charity shops that seem to be the most guilty of this and instead save my donations for the local off-brand shops!
Up until reasonably recently the tip in Leamington had a shop attached to it, run by local sustainability charity Action 21. This was great because they salvaged usable things from the tip and in fact lots of people then bypassed the tip altogether and donated straight to the tip shop. We got our television set, speakers and a VHS player from there for well under £20 each and saved them from landfill. It was so great to poke through and find things - lots of the cool crockery and bits of household stuff in my flat, as well as lots of books and records, came from the tip shop for 10 p each, and it was a great place to get furniture as well. Last year Action 21 lost the contract and it was won by Sue Ryder. They stopped using the shipping containers Action 21 had used and built a shop building, and they started sorting through everything before it made it into the shop. And they have turned away perfectly good donations as well! It's such a shame because now it's expensive, uninteresting and it's totally against what was so great about the tip shop as it was, in that lots of perfectly good things are still going into the landfill. It pisses me off massively, to be honest!
Anyway that long rant aside, my relationship with charity shops has totally changed. I still buy LOTS of secondhand clothes, but they come from ebay instead. - 12 December 2012 at 09:57
I was at a party last night where every third person was indie- they played this song thrice and people shouted along for the Gucci bit XD Most charity shops out here are expensive knicknacks-I almost prefer evilbay for the real goodies (ugh can't believe I just said that-but it's true).
Also disqus not recaptcha please? - 12 December 2012 at 12:00
- Jo Campbell said...
I grew up in Australia where charity shopping was fab. When I moved to the UK about 17 years ago I found lots of wonderful things in charity shops in Edinburgh but it has got to the point where I rarely go into the charity shops where I now live. It's a mix of not-so-cheap giftshop tat and high street clothes which doesn't interest me. The one good place is a sale held in our local football club once or twice a year with rails at 50p or £1 per item and although it isn't big you can find some gems.
- 12 December 2012 at 12:15
- Roobeedoo said...
Oh yes oh yes!
Same situation in Scotland!
And the diversion to ebay of "vintage" items has led to the prices soaring there too. It uised to be that people put things on for 99p and bidding raised the price - that's fine! But now, desirable items START at £10, which I find really off-putting. I also worry about sewing patterns. I went through a phase of "rescuing" them from ebay when I saw big batches for sale from charity sellers (clic sargent is a good one to watch)as I was sure that the majority would end up in landfill after the new buyers sifted out the "good stuff" for re-sale. But I can't save them all! - 12 December 2012 at 13:16
- Crab and Bee said...
Representing Seattle here! I've been thrifting for over 15 years and have definitely noticed the prices going up. I'm hoping it's because there's more demand (and less scorn) for used stuff! Sadly, I'm not sure we can have it both ways, with people recognizing the value of used stuff and prices staying low. Thoughts?
Seattle has a wide range of places to buy second-hand stuff. There are the catch-all thrift stores that sell donated items, consignment stores, curated boutiques, stores specializing in vintage and shops to buy, trade and sell (my personal favorites). Last but not least, we have The Bins which even I'm not brave enough for, which are, yep, bins where everything is 99 cents/pound. They were definitely in Macklemore's video!
Like the anonymous commenter above, I've started looking for higher-quality used clothes that will last me a long time. Even though it costs more, I feel good about buying high-quality stuff without contributing to retail demand. - 12 December 2012 at 16:43
- French Toast Tasha said...
Such an interesting topic! I have definitely noticed this trend in here in the US as well. I agree with Crab, it's good that more people are thrifting rather than buying new cheap stuff, but that probably means the prices will stay higher.
I've recently decided to try and sew everything I really need, bite the bullet and figure out pants for good and all, etc., in part because even if I do find something great at the thrift store, if it's really great it was probably already loved by someone else and won't last very much longer. But, I don't think I'd ever give up treasure hunting altogether, if only to find those few things that I love so I can copy them.
It seems like a two-tier system might be a good idea, if there were some shops that were more selective and more expensive, and another group for the older/weirder/cheaper stuff, if you were willing to dig through it. I'm not sure many people want to operate the second kind anymore, which is a little depressing because where is all that stuff going, and where are the people who really can't afford more than a couple of bucks for something going to shop?
We do have a couple of local charity shops here that still sell very cheap clothing, and tattered sewing patterns. - 12 December 2012 at 17:59
- Miriam said...
great post - I certainly found in the UK the prices seemed rather pricey but I thought it was primarily about making money for their charity. Here in NZ there are still some great ones but a few who have 'designer racks' (while actual designers are often on the cheap racks) some have definitely lost their mojo for sure. I'm like you because I sew I look for fabric first in the linen section and then occasionally browse elsewhere.
- 14 December 2012 at 07:16
- Unknown said...
That really was f*cking awesome Zo! Still giggling away at the video whilst nodding furiously to your text. Here in Wales it's gone the same way, although we do have places like the Pumping Station in Cardiff that is filled with all the stuff that used to be in charity shops, alas it is however marked up as antique/vintage rather than at the expected charity shop prices. I spend more and more time on eBay/Freecycle looking for lower priced items from days gone by instead, particularly as clothing in the valley's charity shops isn't exactly to my taste!
- 14 December 2012 at 19:14
- Cherry said...
Totally agree. Here in Australia our op shops all have a rack marked 'vintage'' which 1, takes the thrill out of trawling through hundreds oh items just to find that one special gem and 2, means anything on there is bound to be $20+. Including that house dress with a huge stain down the front...
- 15 December 2012 at 23:27
- Emily said...
I live in a small town with an aging population, so my local thrift shop is still a real treasure trove. They do squirrel away some goodies for Halloween but other than that you can still find honest-to-goodness vintage on the shelves. And, better than that for me, because we're a college town, you can find fairly on-trend castoffs of well-heeled students, often of name brands I would never pay for new, but that are of decent quality (i.e. Steve Madden shoes).
But more than thrift shops, I love church sales, where everything is less than $1 and you are buying it direct from the old gran who dug it out of her closet! So I guess you could say the dream of the 90s is alive for me.
But then again ... I don't sew!! - 16 December 2012 at 00:48
- Another Sewing Scientist said...
The pattern holocaust is real. My very first blog post was a horrified reaction to my village charity shop using vintage sewing patterns TO WRAP CHINA!!! I have been urging them for the past two years to put the patterns out for sale, and told them I would pay good $$, andthey have put out a few, but I still see them using the tissue for packing. Argh.
- 18 December 2012 at 20:49
- Unknown said...
I live in Wisconsin, USA. The biggest charity resale shop is called Goodwill. I've been shopping there my whole life. When I was younger my mom and I would go to different out of town ones on the weekends. Over the years resale shops have popped up all over. I love that people want to buy second hand as part of an environmental movement. Unfortunately, this means higher prices. Much higher prices. It's gotten to the point that I only buy the sale items at used stores. But I'm glad we don't have the problem where they only sell modern stuff. As long as it's in good condition they'll put it out on a rack.
- 20 December 2012 at 19:14
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text:
Steve sent us a picture of his new ski hat. I love it.
*Update* Steve wrote instructions so you can make your own.
Instructions to make your own Noodly Ski Hat:
It's easier than you might think – here's a list of what you need:
- Woolly hat, preferably a dark color. (I think mine was polyester rather than wool, see the comment on the letters below)
- Noodly appendages. Two 12-packs of "chenille stems". Mine were 12 inches long, 15mm diameter.
- Eyestalks. Chenille rope. This came as a long length, larger diameter than the stems. Cut to length.
- Eyes. Come in packets of various sizes, mine were 1/2in diameter.
- Meatballs. Brown colored pom-poms. Approx 3in diameter.
- (optional) Meat sauce. One ball of red-brown "marinara" colored yarn or wool.
- (optional) Iron-on fabric letters. Mine were 3/4in tall.
- Rubber cement.
- Needle and thread.
Most of the above should be available at your local craft store, I picked up mine at Hobby Lobby.
Construction (refer to the photo)
Eyestalks. Start by making the spiral at one end (the spiral provides a base to stick on the eyes). Then create the rest of the flat "U" shape and finish up with another spiral. Cut off any excess (see diagram). The wire in the material allows the eyestalks to stand upright and be pointed in any direction.
Attach the eyeballs with rubber cement. I put two at each end of the stalks, one on each side – his noodliness is all-seeing! Lay a book or two on top to clamp it down while the glue sets.
Attach meatballs and eyestalks. Lay the flat bottom part of the eyestalk assembly across the top of the hat. Take your needle and thread and attach the meatballs to the hat, while at the same time holding the eyestalks in place.
Add noodles! Poke the noodles into the hat from the outside. When halfway in, loop the noodle back on the inside and poke it back out, half an inch or so to the side of where it went in. Poke the noodles in all around the hat, but close to the meatball/eyestalk combination, i.e near the top of the hat. At the end of each noodle fold it back on itself for the last quarter inch or so to prevent any sharpness from the end of the wire injuring those being touched by his noodly appendage (see diagram). The wire in the chenille stems means they will keep their shape and they can be arranged to your satisfaction, or left to the rigors of normal wear.
Add sustenance. While being anointed by his noodly presence it is only right to provide him sustenance. Loosely wrap the yarn around the hat multiple times (I think we did 30-40 wraps), and secure it loosely in place at four points around the hat with needle and thread.
Add letters. I turned up the bottom inch and a half of the hat brim and ironed on the letters. The instructions called for a hot iron but this will melt, or seriously flatten, polyester fibers in the hat itself. Experiment with lower temperatures that still allow the letters to adhere, if you have a polyester hat. Once again I added letters both front and back so that all could revel in his noodliness.
Feel free to experiment with the ingredients and construction, depending on personal preference and availability. My thanks go to Sue for her help with all aspects of construction that involved needle and thread!
You can download Steve's instructions as a PDF here:
Thanks, Steve!


text:
If you listen closely, you can probably hear it; the slight rustling of hundreds of pages, the chuckles of the shop foreman as he reads the section headings and subtle footnote humor, the collective sigh of the machinery as it mass-produces page after page of graphics programming wisdom.
After months of writing, followed by many more months of editing and revising (it's still unbelievable to me, and more than a little depressing, to know how much you can continue working on your own text and still find things to improve), Flex 4 Fun has gone to print. It's a bit like being put out to stud, except that books are self-reproducing and there's little chance that one of the offspring would win the Triple Crown.
If all goes well at the printer, there should be hardcopy available in mid-September, right before the JavaOne conference, and in plenty of time for your holiday programming-book-giving needs. Just imagine what your mother will say when she opens that completely unexpected gift.
For anyone that bought, or is thinking about buying, the online version, the PrePrint will be updated soon with this version of the text. I'll post something here when that happens.


text:
Top 10 Reasons to See Hoodwinked Too!
- Laura MacCorkle
- Updated Apr 29, 2011
It's been five years since we have last heard or seen of Red and her amazing extreme-sports-loving Granny.
Back then, we'd just seen Hoodwinked and met the twenty-first century version of Little Red Riding Hood. And we soon realized, this isn't your average, animated basket-toting girl next-door. With spunk and sass and whip-smart survival instincts, she wasn't afraid to raise a karate kick nor join in the efforts to help find the mysterious goody bandit who was stealing recipes of local bakers and putting them out of business.
In Hoodwinked Too! Hood vs. Evil in 3D, Red is still alive and kicking but is now away in secret training with a mysterious group called the "Sisters of the Hood." Meanwhile, back at the forest, the rest of her familiar friends (Nicky Flippers, Wolf, Twitchy and more) are holding down the fort at the Happily Ever After Agency (HEA).
But it's "Code Red" when a wicked witch abducts two innocent children (Hansel and Gretel) and has them locked away in her gingerbread house. This is a case that only Red can handle, and the HEA needs her back. And fast!
Clever storytelling and fairy tale retelling that appeals to both adults and children is also embraced by Director Mike Disa who joins the Hoodwinked franchise this second time around. The twenty-year Hollywood veteran made his way to Tinsel Town via Chicago, where he grew up in a large Irish Catholic family and was once a record-holding Altar Boy at his church (he still holds the record as the Altar Boy to serve the most continuous Easter masses in a row).
Driving his grandfather's beat-up Delta 88 and bringing along his portfolio and a conviction that digital filmmaking was the future, after college he made it to Hollywood and soon found work in video games and television before working his way into major animation studios.
We spoke recently about his latest animated accomplishment and why he strongly believes dads, moms, and kids of all ages will thoroughly enjoy Hoodwinked Too! Hood vs. Evil. He's got his reasons …
10. More Bang for the Buck
Ever cooked a fabulous meal on a shoestring budget? Multiply that by a million and you might understand how it feels to make a great film at a reasonable price.
"I just got to work with a talented team of people I'd worked with on other films, other experienced animation filmmakers, to try to get the most out of the limited budget, because you know it's a very small film compared to these big films that are coming out right now. [The goal] was to take a little bit of money and make it as big and as powerful and as spectacular a film about great characters—something that was funny and edge-of-your-seat spectacular—and do it on a reasonable budget. And I think we did."
A good filmmaker respects his audience. Yes, he does. For without an audience, there would be no reason to Too! ...
"I think, and you're going to think I'm being facetious, I think the secret is respect. I and the writers all assume that our audiences are smart people. And they don't need to be pandered to, and they don't need to be insulted and they don't need to be talked down to. I don't think you need to talk down to your audience, and I also don't think that you need to just constantly throw 'fart gags' and biological humor at people because you're afraid that they're drifting off. Tell a real story about real people, be clever, let funny people be funny, let heroes be heroes, let villains be villains and you'll have a great story. And then the rest of it is just hard work."
8. The Greatest Story Ever Told
It all comes back to story, doesn't it? Because if you don't have something interesting to say, then well … zzzzzzz.
"I think what you do is you start with a good character who you care about: Red Riding Hood is a member of the [Happily Ever After Agency], her friends are members of the HEA. They're actively engaged in the process of trying to do good, of trying to make the world a better place. And as you go through and tell their story, you do in such a way that your family would want to sit and watch the whole thing. I always say I've got a 72 year-old in my family and a six year-old in my family, and any film I make is going to have all of them laughing. Maybe not always at the same moment, but I want films that my whole family can enjoy together."
7. You Gotta Have Friends
It's hard enough out there being a single, basket-toting young lady wearing a hoodie. Community is where it's at!
"You need your friends, you need your family, you need your church. And what I saw in Hoodwinked Too! was a great opportunity to explore that with Red and Granny. Granny's a hard act to live up to. [Red's] going to have to step up and fill some big shoes. And one of the nice things about this movie is that at the end of the film Red learns that she doesn't have to do that alone. She not only has her friends, but she has that older generation to lean on. Again, these are good characters. They're all heroes. They're all accomplished. It's not one of those films where all the adults are such idiots that the kids have to run around and do all the thinking. It's a film for families, and families have smart people who are both old and young in them."
6. Do a Do-Over
Forgiveness defined: for·give verb \fər-ˈgiv, fȯr-\transitive verb 1a : to give up resentment of or claim to requital for
"It's important in life. Nobody's perfect. Everybody makes mistakes and without confession, forgiveness and redemption [then] what's the point of struggling? The best way to make the world a better place, the best way to be a hero is to find someone who needs you and give them what they need, and usually it's understanding and forgiveness. In this case, the villain of the film [SPOILER] is lost, and she needs the help of her friends and family to find her way. In a very strong, deliberate way it's mirroring the growth of both Red and Wolf and all the members of the movie. It's basically the same theme that you've got to let it go. You've got to move on. You've got to trust the people around you. You need to work together to make something grow."
5. Girl Power!
A strong woman need not be feared. UNLESS she's a motorcycle-packin' Granny. Or a cape-wearing martial arts expert who now bungee jumps.
"I would say this: I get offered a lot of movies, a lot of scripts and I'm tired to death of animated films that are only about who a young girl's going to date or marry. And as far as I know, the Hoodwinked adventures are the only movies out there in animated film with human heroines who aren't just chasing after men. There's a place for that—surely we've done it to death at this point. The modern American female has more to her life than just who she's going to marry and the films—especially films we show our children—need to reflect that. But I wouldn't have done the film if it didn't have a strong theme of sisterhood and growth. And funny … it had to be funny."
4. Panettiere Is the New Red
We loved you in the original, Anne Hathaway. But Hayden Panettiere's doing a bang-up job following in your footsteps. And carrying that basket …
"Hayden is a joy to work with, and she's a very, very charming, sweet, talented actress and her sweetness and her charm comes out even when she's playing a tough character. She has a unique ability that a lot of actors don't have to make a character, who's in the process of doing a big heroic moment, charming. And she's also very, very good with acting out the physical stuff. So it was great when we had the action scenes with Red. Hayden just got into it. She's an action star, so she knows how to do all that stuff. And she sang that song in the middle of the movie ["I Can Do It Alone"]. She's really an incredibly talented person."
3. Winks and Nudges
Hey, that happened in Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon. That looks like the scene from Mission Impossible. And that sounds a lot like Star Wars. What's the big idea …
"Our film is very much layered. So while there's stuff going on for the kids to enjoy, while there's action and drama or great character moments, while there's comedy and wit, there's also this other level going on which if you notice that chunks of the film are shot like other movies. Sets are pulled from other movies. There are homages in there, and that's because I'm a film fan and I know that my audience ... well, this isn't the first film everybody's seen. And why shouldn't Mom and Dad chuckle at the fact that the gingerbread house where the witch lives is actually the house from Psycho? It doesn't distract from the kids' enjoyment from what's going on, but it adds a layer for Mom and Dad."
2. Japeth the Goat
Um, so what's that crazy, singing mountain goat doing in this scene? And that one? And THAT one?????
"Well, Japeth is my favorite character in this film. I love classic Warner Bros. cartoons. I mean everything doesn't have to be an intellectual French film. Sometimes it's just fun to watch a goat fall down something or fall on something. Japeth is my favorite character. I think he's infinitely funny, and every now and then you just want to make your cartoon as silly and as cartoony as possible. I don't think it takes away from the rest of the film, going on these little breaks. Well, you know you've got an action film going on, and so you have to build tension. But I'm aware of the fact that there are kids in the audience, so I need to break the tension before it gets to the point where anyone would be, in any way, scared or upset because I'm not going to let that happen in a family film for me. I want your kids to enjoy it, and be comfortable and be relaxed. This film is exciting, but it's safe. And Japeth is a big part of that."
1. All 3D, All the Time
Yawn. So if you've seen one 3D animated film, then you've seen them all, right? Not so fast …
"Unlike a lot of the films you see that are in 3D, the whole movie is designed to work in 3D. So the result of that is that it pulls you in and can add an emotional depth to the scenes where it will bring you closer to the character's point of view. But it can also add that extra edge of excitement and the thrill ride when we're doing the big intense action stuff. I think it's a tool that's used well in this film. I'm very proud of the team that put the shots together. And so I would say if you're willing to go to the effort to come see this film, you will have a great experience as a family. You'll enjoy it yourself. It's funny. You'll be excited, you'll be drawn in. The 3D is definitely worth it, and well thought out and wasn't just slapped in at the end to get more money out of you. I hope I respect my audience and appreciate the time and effort they put in to see the film and want them to feel like I care about them. And I want them to have a good time."
Hoodwinked Too! Hood vs. Evil stars the following cast of characters:
- Hayden Panettiere – "Little Red"
- Joan Cusack – "Verushka the Witch"
- Patrick Warburton – "The Big Bad Wolf"
- Bill Hader – "Hansel"
- Brad Garrett – "Giant"
- Amy Poehler – "Gretel"
- Glenn Close – "Granny"
- Martin Short – "The Woodsman"
- David Ogden Stiers – "Nicky Flippers"
- Heidi Klum – "Heidi"
Produced by The Weinstein Company and rated PG for some mild rude humor, language and action, Hoodwinked Too! Hood vs. Evil opens wide in theaters (both 3D and 2D) on Friday, April 29, 2011.
For a full review, please visit the Crosswalk.com Movies channel.


text:
Friday, December 7, 2012
Hepi Krismas to you all!
CAFÉ PACIFIC is on leave until mid-January. Monitor Pacific Scoop for updates.
Tuesday, December 4, 2012
Hats off to PMC student investigative, convergent media awards in annual Ossies awards
Karen Abplanalp speaking at the recent Jesson Awards about her article "Blood Money". Photo: John Miller |
AUT Pacific Media Centre's Karen Abplanalp has won a rare double award for her article on New Zealand investment in a controversial gold and copper mine in Indonesian-ruled West Papua at the annual Ossies for student journalism in Australia.
She has won both the Sally A. White Prize for Investigative Journalism and Best Feature (Print) Award.
Her article, "Blood Money", developed out of an assignment in her postgraduate Asia-Pacific Journalism course at AUT University in New Zealand, was published as the lead feature in Metro magazine last December.
Last month, she was also awarded New Zealand's Bruce Jesson Emerging Journalist Award for the investigative article.
Abplanalp investigated the $1.3 million New Zealand Superannuation Fund (NZSF) "ethical" investment in the US-owned Freeport McMoRan mine at Grasberg in southern West Papua region, which has been at the heart of human rights allegations for several years.
Late last year, a strike at the mine led to several killings by security forces.
Judge Sharon Mascall-Dare in the Journalism Education Association of Australia (JEAA) Ossie awards investigative journalism category said: "Karen Abplanalp's investigation into human rights abuses at a copper and gold mine in West Papua is an outstanding piece of journalism.
"Her methodology is robust; her presentation compelling. Her work was responsible for a national debate that, ultimately, persuaded the New Zealand Superannuation Fund to end its investment in the mine: her work held the fund's "ethical" investment policies to account.
'Blood Money'
"Blood Money is exemplary in demonstrating investigative journalism as a medium for change, in the public interest."
In the Best Feature (Print) category, judge Max Anderson, editor of Adelaide Hills Magazine, said Abplanalp's article "demonstrates investigative savvy and a command of the feature writer's art.
"Incredibly assured and perfectly metered, it allows the facts and interviewees to do the hard lifting without confounding narrative or surrendering pace. Any editor serving educated readers would be delighted to receive it."
The PMC's Alex Perrottet also won a highly commended award in the Best Use of Convergent Media for "Not eccentric at all", a combined slideshow, audio interview and text report providing an intimate glimpse of the life of King George Tupou V of Tonga before he died in March. This was published on Pacific Scoop website and posted on YouTube.
Judge Chris Campbell, director of Our World Today, said: "Engaging and personal choice of story - great interview."
Perrottet has been the PMC's Pacific Media Watch media freedom project editor for the past two years.
The winner in this category was Monash University's "highly professional" Dangerous Grounds investigative website probing environmental hazards and policies in the state of Victoria.
Pacific Media Centre director Professor David Robie praised the centre's students for their contribution to investigative work.
"It demonstrates the value of investigative research journalism when universities support their independent role," he said.
"Karen Abplanalp's article was recently republished as an example of research journalism in Pacific Journalism Review."
The Best Publication category in the Ossies was won by the University of the South Pacific's Wansolwara newspaper.
"This entry stood out because the journalists produced highly relevant and interesting stories in the public interest," said judge Paul Starick, head of news of Advertiser Newspapers in Adelaide.
"The front-page expose on the rigging of the Miss World Fiji beauty pageant was a great example of investigative journalism, both in the research and writing."
This report also won the Best News Story category.
"Not only did the stories in this publication stand out from the crowd, the journalists worked under trying circumstances. Wansolwara [had been] subject to censorship under martial law. Yet it campaigned for press freedom in numerous articles - surely something that must test the courage of any journalist."
Stop press: David Robie is the only JEA journalist and media academic whose students have won the best publication award at three different universities for three separate publications: Uni Tavur (University of PNG, 1995), Wansolwara (University of the South Pacific, 2000), and Te Waha Nui (AUT University, 2005)
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text:
Israel's prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, gave private assurances to Barack Obama on Friday evening that his country was not planning at that moment to launch a ground invasion of Gaza—but those plans would change, he said, if Hamas escalated its rocket war.
The private assurances were at odds with public signals from Israel's military. Tanks and artillery gathered at the border with Gaza on Saturday in preparation for what looked like an incursion. Israel Defense Forces spokeswoman Avital Leibovich told The Telegraph, "Morale is high. We are currently training and preparing for ground possibilities."
But this was not the message from the Israeli leader in his conversation with Obama, according to two U.S. officials briefed on the call. These sources say Netanyahu said Israel would not consider a full-scale ground invasion unless there was escalation from Hamas or a strike that caused significant casualties. There has not been, for example, a date set for such an invasion—nor are the other kinds of contingency plans Israel would need in such a circumstance in place, according to these U.S. officials, who declined to be named due to the sensitivity of the conversations.
One senior U.S. official told The Daily Beast, "The Israeli leadership at this point is leaning against a ground invasion. No one wants that. If Hamas ratchets up the pressure, however, they may elect to do so."
A U.S. intelligence official said the conversations between Netanyahu and Obama are markedly different than their discussions on Iran, in which Netanyahu pointedly declined to give Obama assurances that Israel would not unilaterally strike Iran.
Similar to his posturing on Iran, Netanyahu has given the impression at times that a strike on Gaza may be imminent. On Saturday, he vaguely promised to "broaden action inside Gaza" if the rocket barrages did not stop. He has called up 75,000 army reservists. Less than 13,000 reservists were activated before the 2008–2009 war in Gaza.
Israel's ambassador to Washington, Michael Oren, did not comment on Netanyahu's Friday call with Obama. He did, however, say the prospect of an invasion had not been ruled out.
"If they keep shooting at 5.5 million Israelis at the current rate we will have no choice but to use all necessary and legitimate means to defend our citizens and that includes possible ground action," he told The Daily Beast.
While the barrage of rockets has forced millions of Israelis to live in bomb shelters, the rockets themselves have been largely thwarted, in part by Israel's various missile-defense systems. The most effective missile-defense system appears to be Iron Dome, for which the U.S. granted $205 million in Fiscal Year 2011, which ended on Sept. 30. Thus far, the program has intercepted 90 percent of those rockets that would have fallen on populated areas, according Israeli military spokesmen.
Another reason Israel may not launch a full-scale invasion into Gaza again is because the Jewish state paid a significant political cost in the aftermath of what was called Operation Cast Lead in 2008 and 2009. That operation claimed at least 1,166 Palestinian lives, according to the official Israeli estimate. Israel withdrew the last of its ground forces on Jan. 21, 2009, one day after President Obama took the oath of office.
The U.N. Human Rights Council (a body that has ignored atrocities in Syria, Sudan, and Iran) launched an investigation led by South African jurist Richard Goldstone claiming Israel deliberately targeted civilians in that war. Goldstone later rescinded his claim and apologized for the report.
Netanyahu, in his current term as prime minister, has developed a reputation for tough talk but stealth action. Under Netanyahu, the IDF has conducted daring operations against what it considers the global support network for Hamas in Sudan and Ukraine and other countries far away from Israel. At the same time, Israel has not launched a bombing campaign against Iran's nuclear program, despite many public threats to do so.